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Split screen is a display technique in computer graphics that consists of dividing graphics and/or text into adjacent (and possibly overlapping) parts, typically as two or four
rectangular In Euclidean plane geometry, a rectangle is a quadrilateral with four right angles. It can also be defined as: an equiangular quadrilateral, since equiangular means that all of its angles are equal (360°/4 = 90°); or a parallelogram containin ...
areas. This is done to allow the simultaneous presentation of (usually) related graphical and textual information on a
computer display A computer monitor is an output device that displays information in pictorial or textual form. A discrete monitor comprises a visual display, support electronics, power supply, housing, electrical connectors, and external user controls. The d ...
. TV sports used this presentation methodology in the 1960s for instant replay. The original non-dynamic split screens differed from windowing systems in that the latter always allowed overlapping and freely movable parts of the screen (the " windows") to present related as well as unrelated application data to the user, while the former were strictly limited to fixed non-overlapping positions. The split screen technique can also be used to run two instances of an application, possibly with another user interacting with the other instance.


In video games

The
split screen Split screen may refer to: * Split screen (computing), dividing graphics into adjacent parts * Split screen (video production), the visible division of the screen * ''Split Screen'' (TV series), 1997–2001 * Split-Screen Level, a bug in the vid ...
feature is commonly used in non- networked, also known as couch co-op, video games with multiplayer options. In its most easily understood form, a split screen for a two-player video game is an audiovisual output device (usually a standard television for
video game console A video game console is an electronic device that outputs a video signal or image to display a video game that can be played with a game controller. These may be home consoles, which are generally placed in a permanent location connected to a ...
s) where the display has been divided into two equally sized areas so that the players can explore different areas simultaneously without being close to each other. This has historically been remarkably popular on consoles, which until the 2000s did not have access to the Internet or any other network and is less common today with modern support for online console-to-console multiplayer support.


History

Split screen gaming dates back to at least the 1970s, with games such ''Drag Race'' (1977) from Kee Games in the arcades being presented in this format. It has always been a common feature of two or more player home console and computer games too, with notable titles being ''
Kikstart II ''Kikstart 2'' is a motorcycle trials racing videogame released for the Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum. It enjoyed more success than its predecessor, '' Kikstart''. The game allowed 2-player simultaneous (via a split-screen faci ...
'' for 8-bit systems, a number of driving and racing games (such as ''
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'' and ''
Road Rash II ''Road Rash II'' is a 1992 racing and vehicular combat game developed and published by Electronic Arts (EA) for the Sega Genesis The Sega Genesis, known as the outside North America, is a 16-bit Fourth generation of video game consoles, ...
'' on 16-bit systems), and ''Lemmings'' on 16-bit systems all employing a vertical or horizontal screen split for two player games. '' Xenophobe'' is notable as a three-way split screen arcade title, although on home platforms it was reduced to one or two screens. The addition of four controller ports on home consoles also ushered in more four-way split screen games, with '' Mario Kart 64'' and '' Goldeneye 007'' on the Nintendo 64 being two well known examples. In arcades, machines tended to move towards having a whole screen for each player, or multiple connected machines, for multiplayer. On home machines, especially in the first and third person shooter genres, multiplayer is now more common over a network or the internet rather than locally with split screen.


See also

* Multiplayer video game * Screen tearing *
Split screen (video production) In film and video production, split screen is the visible division of the screen, traditionally in half, but also in several simultaneous images, rupturing the illusion that the screen's frame is a seamless view of reality, similar to that of t ...


References

{{reflist Computer graphics User interface techniques Video game terminology